Zel'arven
Zel'arven is a city located in the north of the desert in Vhir close to the city of Okarthel. It was lost thousands of years ago, hidden behind a veil that prevented time from passing inside of it, once the barrier was broken the city remained, though all of its inhabitants perished. History Lost to the Sands Zel'arven was one of the first of the Zels ''to be constructed, though relative to more recent examples such as Zel'bidaal, the city is quite small. Built by both humans and xhihirans, the city features lots of running water and flowing pools throughout. These first inhabitants were building off a midway point trading hub between the nomads of the desert and the city of Vis in the north. At some point during its history, the city came to be at war with the Dragons of Vhir, as well as their worshippers, the dragonborn. The city at this point was lead by various priests and a xhihiran prophet known as Aldrax, who was the foremost pushing for the conflict with the dragons. The figure known as the Steward sealed the city away, locking it in time so that nothing within the city would change intending to return later to resolve the issue placing a ''quest spell upon his ring to force him to complete the task as a promise to the people he had just imprisoned. The Deceiver, who was also present, set up an escape route for himself when he and his allies were to return and slay the warmongering Aldrax and promptly leave without damaging the city. The Lifting of the Veil The existence of the city had been known to scholars for centuries, though its exact location had long been forgotten. After careful study, in 702LN a group of Zelfolk and dragonborn from Okarthel worked out a probably location for the city, often receiving seemingly divine inspiration as they researched the topic. Teaming up with a Quel'Doran fruit merchant, Cirdus Melus, who put them in contact with a group of adventurers known as the Adorned Hand, they set off to find the lost city. Discovering the city surrounded by a swirling ward of sand the scholars waited whilst the adventurers passed through the barrier, emerging less than a second later standing a few feet ahead of where they entered loaded with weapons, clothes and jewellery. The population of the city then simultaneously turned to sand and dust as their bodies were suddenly subject to four thousand years of lost time, their city decaying but standing. The scholars later returned to the city and began excavating the sand that had built up around it, though the city was in pristine condition considering its age. Resettlement The Zelfolk and other peoples have since attempted to resettle the city, with its waterways around the city being cleared of debris allowing fresh water to flow around the walkways and steps of the streets for people to drink and bathe in. Its main settlers are residents of the surrounding desert, nomads that descend from those people lost in Zel'arven thousands of years ago, scholars from various institutions from around Vhir and Etan, and Zelfolk from the lesser settlements of the region seeking to become rich of the newly discovered city. The War in the Silence For more on this event, see here. During the conflict that sprung from the rise of the Usurper many refugees from the Zel Lands flocked to Zel'arven putting the fledgling community under tremendous stress. Many refugees left once the conflict was over, returning to Zel'bidaal, though a small minority stayed allowing for more of the city to be populated. Structure The Ambassadors In the early days of settlement when people were simply entering the city and wandering its streets claiming spots for themselves several factions emerged from the scholars, traders, nomads and other settlers that arrived, arranging themselves apart from one another. An agreement was reached that each would send an ambassador to discuss how they should precede, this then escalate into almost daily meetings between the representatives who formed an impromptu council, though still referred to as Ambassadors. This group debates and sets out the plans for the settlement as its develops hoping to set the groundwork for some other type of more effective government to take over in the future. The Expedition Leaders The Expedition Leaders are representatives of the investment made in the resettling of the city by Zel'bidaal with its Magistrates having taken some great interests in the efforts to reclaim the city. These are often mercenaries or veteran leaders who have travelled Vhir all their lives lending their experience to the settlers, many of whom plan to stay in the growing city permanently. Settled Traders These are the various traders and peddlers that arrived in Zel'arven without orders from any other authority and simply came to establish their own shops and businesses in the growing city, many coming from xhihiran communities or the Quel'Doran colonies . Having a great deal of mercantile experience this group became the first to set up permanent residence in old buildings on the main street of Zel'arven. Military Mercenaries Zel'arven employs a great deal of mercenaries to protect their caravans and traders as they move around Vhir, they are given over their own quarter of the city, mainly due to their being too much space and not enough people to fill it all, where they train and have their headquarters. Often they are led by a veteran who has been paid to remain in Zel'arven by the Magistrates of Zel'bidaal. The Faceless A small number of the Faceless have taken up positions in Zel'arven, most either having escorted Zelfolk from other settlements to the city or searching for artefacts and writings of their order which they believe had a presence in early Zel'arven thousands of years ago. Society Low Population A problem in Zel'arven is that although the city is not as large as the other great Zels of Vhir, it is too large for the population that is present. The result is that a great deal of the city becomes contained the hands of just a few people or peoples, some of whom are unwilling to share their claim with newcomers. As the population grows such issues will in the long term be ironed out, but in the short term it could spark racial tensions in the city. Proximity to other States Zel'arven is dangerously close to the dragonborn territory of Okarthel, as the Zel and the Dragon's City have never existed side by side until now there has never been any cause for alarm, but with the sudden reintroduction of the desert city to the world there has been a close monitoring of the Zel by the dragonborn, sending ambassadors and no doubt spies to the city. To the north lies the colonies of the Empire of Quel'Doran, a group that has had little experience with the Zelfolk of the south, though a small number have come from that region seeking to start a new life in the Zel. The Water Towers Following the resettlement of Zel'arven the scholars first began to look for the legendary Water Towers, constructs of grand design that drew water up from deep below the desert and pumped it throughout the city. After months of searching a group of adventurers were hired to investigate a possible site where a water tower should stand. The party returned standing atop one of the water towers as they all began to rise up from beneath the city gushing out a tremendous volume of water. Religion Diverse Beliefs With the various peoples that have made their home in Zel'arven there are a number of diverse faiths and no permanent church or dominating religion. The most common would be the Zelfolk Creation Myth and worship of some aspect of Tempus. = Category:Location Category:Vhir Category:Settlement Category:Zelfolk